Posted by Clint Dixon [172.70.130.213] on Tuesday, July 27, 2021 at 13:30:19 :
In Reply to: Re: Paging Rick Robbins posted by Rick Robbins [162.158.187.134] on Tuesday, July 27, 2021 at 10:35:27 :
Your clarification of fully functional is very helpful. It is just one of those things about the internet and forums. It can be hard to convey exactly what is meant when people are not talking face to face.
I feel you have broadened your search. Keep in mind that most trucks that you may find for sale are probably past the stage of being fully functional due to owners reluctance to sell while they are using and/or enjoying them. Thus, they tend to sit for a while until the decision is made to part with them. On the other hand, someone who has returned a truck to a fully functional condition with the intent to sell, may have not have spent enough time actually driving the truck to discover all the little things that may have been missed. Not intentionally of course.
Also, a truck that is fully functional one day may not be the next day. Case in point, I like to keep my trucks ready for a 100+ mile trip anytime I feel like taking one. My '51 operated reliably until one day it appeared to start running very hot. I spent months diagnosing and replacing parts that had variable amounts of age on them until I narrowed it down to a somewhat faulty temperature gauge or sender. I still have not replaced it and the truck still appears to run hot until it is checked with a hand held thermometer. No overheating, boil overs, or rough performance, just and annoying hot indication on the dash gauge.
My '47 was very reliable until the last trip I wanted to take to town last year. The brakes started locking up on the way. I spent the better part of the winter replacing all of the brake components as the last time I had completely replaced everything was in 1983. About every year or so I have to replace a wheel cylinder or a hub seal that has worn out. Since I have replaced everything including the hub and axle seals, and repacked all the bearings, does this now mean that it will not give me any trouble for a few years and all of a sudden all of those parts will then be old and worn out at the same time?
Even a fully functional truck of this age needs constant attention. That is part of the reason I like them so much.
Junior
Follow Ups: